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An unexciting noir wannabe about an attempted money grab following a millionaire's mysterious disappearance. When a lawyer representing the man's family spots a stranger who bears an uncanny resemblance to the missing fellow, he recruits him to infiltrate the family and find out whatever he can. Among the first things he learns (no surprise here): not everyone is telling the truth. As the handsome imposter, Kent Smith is believable but bland (he underplays a lot), and the movie itself, far from providing enough of the plot, dialogue, and imagery that noir demands, falls unsatisfyingly short with each.

Not a disaster, but hardly a thrill-fest either.

Maybe it was because I had never seen "Star Trek: Discovery," the series this movie was based on. Maybe it was because--as a result--I knew nothing about any of the characters, including Michelle Yeoh's, and so had no familiarity with them, no reason to care about any of them. Or maybe it was just the confusing plot, the overly frenetic action, and the video game-style FX that hardly ever allow the viewer a chance to breathe. Or maybe it was all those things. Wherever the blame lies, "Star Trek: Section 31" is not a very good--or even moderately good--movie. Yeoh (who at least gets a couple of chances to engage in her own specialized brand of butt-kicking) plays a deep space bigwig who once owned a high-tech bomb capable of laying waste to the Federation, lost it, and has now been recruited to join the dark op agents of Starfleet's Section 31 in order to get it back. A somewhat promising opening quickly devolves into a flick that is anything but, and the murky motivations that weigh down some of the film's final scenes don't help, either. My advice: if "Star Trek" movies are your thing, watch (or re-watch) the Shatner/Nimoy classics that started it all. Or turn to the ones starring Patrick Stewart, or the later films featuring Chris Pine. (I've seen them all, and they're SO much better--even the weaker ones.) "Section 31" is for "Star Trek" masochists only.

The planning, execution, and aftermath of a big-time jewel heist. When the dour-faced Tony le Stephanois (he hardly ever smiles) is released after five years in prison, he and a couple of pals decide to rob a well-known Paris jewelry shop. After rounding out the team with a fourth guy who knows his way around a safe, everything is set, manpower wise, and all that's left are the details: finding a parking spot for the getaway car, working out a way to completely disable the store's alarm, keeping an eye on the local beat cop to determine exactly when he'll be sauntering by on patrol. The most celebrated part of the movie is the scene devoted to the heist itself: thirty minutes long, without any dialogue or music (or almost any sound at all), it deserves every kudo it's ever received. Of course, it's once the job is over that the you-know-what hits the fan, and the trouble really begins. The black-and-white cinematography is gorgeous, many of the images are pure noir, the dialogue is terrific (and entirely in French; "Rififi" is subtitled), and the performances are gripping. It's all stylish, sophisticated, and very suspenseful. If you've never seen a noir before, this is a fine place to start. If you have sampled the genre but have somehow missed this one, it's time to play catch-up. You will not be disappointed.